The Articles of Confederation, ratified on March 1, 1781, were the first attempt at organized government in America. Individual states were given too much power, while the power of the central government was very minimal, leading to the near demise of the young country. An anonymous writer in the Norwich Packet proclaimed in 1786: “Each State at present possesses powers so entirely independent of the others that no general system can be adopted. They are beginning to discover that a government with so many heads is a monster in politics” (Humphrey 2003: 109). Rather than working together as a nation for a common cause, states worked against each other. There was no source of revenue from the states, and under the Articles of Confederation there was no way to make the states pay their share of the ever-increasing national debt. One of the largest sources of revenue, foreign and interstate commerce, was not controlled nationally but rather controlled individually by states. No profits were spent on the national debt. Currency was inconsistent and differed from state to state, passing laws or changing articles was almost impossible, and the lack of a three-tier political system meant that there was no authority above the state level. There is no doubt that good things resulted from the Articles of Confederation. It was an important attempt for a young wartime country, but in the end there were too many weaknesses. America needed a strong central government to survive, which led to the creation of the Constitution, which is still used today ("To form a more perfect union"). When the Articles of Confederation were in effect, America was a young nation still recovering. of a costly war. The central problem in the early 1780s... middle of paper... the objectives of the Federal Union which we will soon reduce to dust..." wrote George Washington in 1783 (Humphrey 2003, 110). It was obvious to the nation's leaders that the Articles of Confederation had failed. The central government was far too weak and did not have enough power over the states to control even minor things. Without a source of revenue, a trading system, or any form of state organization, the country was bankrupt. The Articles of Confederation lasted just over eight years and were finally replaced on March 4, 1789 (Henretta et al. 2010). Delegates had to reach a compromise between a weak and disorganized central government and a strong government with limited but essential powers. This led to the creation of the United States Constitution which, unlike the Articles of Confederation, has stood the test of time thanks to its strong central government..